Freshwater groaned as she opened her eyes, the dim lamp on Steven's bedside table feeling like it was brighter than ever as the gem tried to force the room that was spinning around her. Shaking her head to try to shake the brain fog she was in, the gem rolled over onto her side so she was no longer facing the blinding light of the lamp and grabbed the covers to throw over her head in an attempt to retreat into the darkness and sleep off whatever hell she had been through the night before.
Before she could, however, her eyes widened in shock when she saw Pearl's gemstone sitting in a basket on a nightstand on the other side of the room. Gasping, the gem threw the covers off of her and jumped to her feet to rush over, her mind in a blind panic, something she immediately regretted when her legs immediately gave out from underneath her and she was sent crashing to the ground, a rush of memories hitting her as soon as she hit the ground. The proposal, the Diamonds and Gold Pearl attacking, Lapis dropping the barn on Blue Diamond, Gold Pearl poofing her fiance and cracking her gemstone…but, what had happened next?
Freshwater felt her heart pounding in her chest as she raised her head in an attempt to see whether or not the gemstone had a crack in it, simultaneously trying again to push herself to a standing position, again falling to the ground as her body protested.
Feeling her eyes well up with tears, Freshwater let out choked sob as she closed her eyes, not looking up until she heard light footsteps rapidly coming up the stairs.
"Uni! Uni are you o- Oh my stars." Jet said, quickly putting the tray of food she had been holding on the table with the basket on it and carefully grabbing the basket before she sat next to the gem on the floor, apologizing profusely.
"I'm so sorry I left you alone! After we realized you'd passed out against the tree, we rushed you inside and waited for you to wake up. Steven and the others are outside talking to the Diamonds right now, so I stayed inside to watch over you for when you came back. But then I figured 'hey, she's probably going to be exhausted and want some form of earth nourishment, so I should try to make some of the soup we used to make in the Zoo!' But," the gem took a deep breath to steady herself, reaching into the basket and gingerly picking up Pearl's gemstone and wrapping Freshwater's hands around it as she continued. "She's okay. Steven got to her quickly enough that he was able to fix her before any…permanent changes occurred." she explained, cringing at the last sentence.
Freshwater gingerly cupped the gemstone in her hands as she took a few deep breaths, her adrenaline rush only starting to go down when she had inspected every inch of the gemstone and found it undamaged.
"Where is she?" Freshwater asked simply, turning her head to face Jet, fire in her eyes.
The Onyx bit her lower lip. "Gold Pearl? Well…she's outside with The Diamonds. Before you get hostile, though, the war is…kinda at a stalemate. Steven was able to get through to them." she explained.
Freshwater's eyes widened. "Wait. Steven got through. To the Diamonds." the gem said in disbelief.
Jet arched an eyebrow. "Yeah. Wait, you don't remember that?"
Freshwater shook her head, rubbing her temples with a sigh. "I don't remember much. I remember everything up until Gold Pearl tried to crack Pearl's gemstone. After that…I think I kinda just blacked out in a fit of rage." she murmured, gingerly circling Pearl's gemstone with one hand.
Jet pursed her lips, still confused. "Well, from what I gathered from a very pissed Gold Pearl, you whooped her ass." the gem said with a snicker. "Oh man, I've never seen such hatred in a gem's eyes 'til she watched me 'n Bismuth carry you and Pearl inside. But…underneath all that hatred, I saw a little confusion." the Onyx said, turning serious again. "Instead of looking at you with disgust like most gems see gems that are…unique, she looked at you like she was in shock. Hell I'm pretty sure if the Diamonds hadn't stopped the battle in time and I hadn't been appointed to watch over you, she would have tried to sneak in here just to get a look at you before she tried to shatter you."
Freshwater pursed her lips in confusion. "Not sure why she would want to do that. The disdain she has for defects is bread straight from Homeworld." she muttered, wiping her tears.
Jet sighed. "Fair enough. But…it was almost like she was fascinated by you. In a really gross way I mean. It was like she wanted to know more about you, and she was furious that she had to follow Yellow and Blue Diamond's lead for once." the gem paused. "Was she acting that way when you were fighting her? Me and the others couldn't really see what was going on since we were taking on Blue Diamond, so you got more one on one time with her than any of us."
Freshwater frowned, furrowing her gem in thought. "Honestly? I'm not sure. From what I remember, when I fought her she was very cocky. The most I can assume is when I went into a blind fury, I attacked her a second time. I just…can't remember that time. All I know is one moment I'm staring at my fiance's cracked gemstone, and the next I'm waking up in Steven's bed."
Jet cocked her head to the side, her eyes widening in surprise. "Has that ever happened before?"
Freshwater thought for a moment before nodding slowly. "Yes, but it was never bad enough where I actually passed out. The first time it happened was a while ago. See, when Peridot, Holly Blue Agate, and Jasper realized I had set Steven, Garnet, and Amethyst free and that I was trying to break a vent to see if I could get to Pearl too, they tried to stop me, but it was like during that time my adrenaline was running so deep that I just…didn't register any of the pain of the hits they were sending my way until Peridot hit me with her beam that froze me in place. I was so angry that in the moment where Holly Blue stared at me with interest and demanded I tell her what my problem was, I wasn't scared of her - at least until she slapped me for calling her stupid dingy earth tech." she said with a small smirk.
"The second time was when we were trying to escape the Zoo. Holly Blue tried to poof Pearl and I just…I lost my mind. I tried to take her on one by one. In that moment, I wasn't afraid of her. Of course, I couldn't take her in a fight, but in that moment I had the upper hand because of how shocked she was that I stood up to her." the gem said, turning serious again. "Many things in this world scare me, and oddly enough, the Diamonds aren't even at the top of that list." she said, biting her lower lip and looking away. "Holly Blue is. But…when gems directly try to jeopardize the safety of the people I care about, it's like all my fear vanishes and I get furious. That's when I black out." the gem paused. "But…it's never been so bad that I passed out because of it." the gem murmured with a sigh, placing Pearl's gemstone back in the basket and pulling her knees to her chest.
Jet nodded, standing and picking up the tray of food she had brought before returning to her spot next to Freshwater on the floor. "Well, I'm not sure what happened either, but I'm just glad you're okay." she said, smiling as she placed the tray on Freshwater's lap. "I'm sure Pearl would be proud."
Freshwater nodded with a sigh. "I…I hope so. I just wish she was with me. I…I don't know how I can face the Diamonds without her - even if we are on a truce right now."
Jet hesitated before nodding. "I wish she was here for you too. But, until then," she said, reaching into her gem and pulling out a box and setting it on the tray. "I made this for you. That way you can always have her with you - even though you're away from each other for now." she said, rubbing her arm awkwardly as Freshater opened the box with a gasp.
"I wasn't sure if you'd be okay with me doing it, and I totally understand if you don't want to wear it, but-" Jet trailed off, awkwardly watching Freshwater's reaction as the gem reached into the box and pulled out a chain with Pearl's ring gingerly looped through the hole where the ring finger would have gone. "I wanted to make facing the Diamonds a little less intimidating." she explained as the Pearl carefully placed the necklace around her neck, gingerly holding the ring in one hand and looking at her own ring with a smile. "Thanks Jet. I really appreciate it." she said, wrapping an arm around her.
The Onyx blushed with a small laugh, hugging the gem back. "Woah, you goin' soft on me, Uni?"
Freshwater rolled her eyes, pulling away with stars in her eyes. "Can't help it." she said, offering the gem a small smile. "You're a good friend."
The Onyx couldn't help a broad smile spreading across her face. "I'm glad you think so, Uni. Now, now that you know your fiance's alright, you should get some rest." she said, picking up the tray and putting it on the bedside table before helping Freshwater to the bed and placing the tray in her lap. "I'm going to check to check on the others to make sure the Diamonds haven't tried anything. You stay here. I don't know what happened last night, but whatever it was took a lot out of you."
Freshwater nodded, rolling her eyes. "Alright, alright. I'll take it easy."
Jet nodded curtly. "Good. Because if you died under my watch, Pearl would slaughter me on sight." she said over her shoulder as she closed the door behind her and made her way to the temple door, pausing with her hand on the doorknob and groaning to herself as tears filled her eyes and she felt Blue Diamond's sadness aura wash over her.
"Wonderful." the gem murmured, shaking her head and opening the door as she made her way outside - only to be immediately hit with a splash of water that soaked her, Garnet, Bismuth, Amethyst, and a fuming Gold Pearl.
"Just. Wonderful." Jet repeated under her breath, leaning against the porch with fury in her eyes but forcing herself to remain silent as Blue Diamond stopped crying and put Steven down with the other Crystal Gems.
"Okay." Steven said, taking a deep breath as he approached the Diamonds. "My mom kept it secret from almost everyone." he explained, rubbing his neck at the blank look of confusion that crossed Yellow and Blue Diamond's faces.
|Well, apparently Mom... Oh, geez, you don't know what a mom is... Okay! Pink Diamond took the form of Rose Quartz permanently after faking her shattering. Then Rose Quartz gave up that form to create a new life with my Dad: me. Rose passed her gemstone and some of her powers onto me, but... that's all. I... I don't have any of Pink or Rose's memories " he explained, raising hi shirt to show Yellow Diamond his gem. "I'm sorry." he said as the Diamonds stared at it intently.
Yellow Diamond frowned and pursed her lips, stroking her chin. "Hmm. I'm sure your memories are in there somewhere, Pink."
"Actually, I go by Steven." Steven protested, a look of frustration momentarily crossing his face. The novelty of explaining he was not his mother was growing more and more irksom with every time he had to explain it.
Appearing to have either not heard him or ignored him entirely, Blue Diamond's eyes widened. "Oh, stars! How did you even survive?! We blasted the planet and obliterated every Gem on its surface!"
Steven cringed. "Well…They weren't exactly... obliterated." he explained. "See -" the boy froze in his tracks when he heard a loud roar in the distance, all of the gems immediately turning in the direction of the noise, letting out a loud gasp when they saw a feral, purple, wolf-like creature with sharp fangs and piercing yellow eyes on the edge of the forest, glaring fiercely at the gems with a loud, low, growl."
"Hey, this is what I was talking about!" Steven explained, turning his attention to the gem, his eyes widening when he saw everyone had pulled their weapons. "Hey, hey, it's okay! We don't have to poof them this ti-" the boy's protest was cut off by Yellow Diamonds voice, which was in horror-stricken awe. "What…am I looking at?" the gem asked, watching as the creature paced back and forth, their growls growing more and more frantic.
"That's…that's B9!" Jet said, immediately dropping her weapon and rushing down the stairs, taking them two at a time.
"Jet! Be careful!" Steven called after her, following the gem close behind and motioning for the others to follow him as the gem ran across the beach.
B9's fierce pacing back and forth finally slowed when she saw Jet running towards her, the gem finally sitting on the forest floor so Jet could hug wrap her arms around the gem, burying her face into the gem's fur. "I'm so glad your mind isn't completely broken yet! The Diamonds are here and…and I think they can help." she said, pulling away slightly when B9's eyes lit up when the Diamonds got too close for her liking, the gem immediately becoming aggressive and letting out a violent snarl that shook the ground around the gems.
"This is your friend that helped you fix the Zoo and helped that defect free the humans." Yellow Diamond said, dumbfounded.
Jet's eyes narrowed. "Firstly, Freshwater is not defective. She's unique. Secondly, yes. It is." she explained, turning back to B9 and comforting her by gently stroking her bristling fur.
"There's also more gems out there like her. One of them is centipeetle." Steven explained, holdinup his phone so the Diamonds could see her. "I've tried to heal her, but... It didn't stick." he said disappointedly.
"You tried to….heal her?" Blue Diamond said, her eyes widening in surprise.
"But maybe you two can help B9! You're so much stronger than me, and... I got close!" Steven said, motioning to B9, who didn't look convinced.
Blue Diamond looked wary. "Well, that's not something we normally do…" she said, her voice trailing off as Yellow Diamond nodded. "This is completely unprecedented."
Jet glared at the Diamonds, fire in her eyes. Just as the gem opened her mouth to tear into them, however, Steven put a hand on her shoulder, calming her. "No! You did this to our planet! You did this to her! And now, you have to help her— and every other corrupted gem!"
Yellow Diamond looked taken aback, but sighed. She should have been used to Pink's tantrums by now, but yet here she was, giving into another one. "Hmm, very well... I can try, but I make no promises." she said, rubbing her palms together and reaching out a hand to attempt to uncorrupt B9.
As soon as the gem reached a hand out, however, B9 backed up and bared her teeth, glaring at Yellow Diamond with hate in her eyes.
"Pink, this is ridiculous. Your pet clearly does not want our help." Yellow Diamond said, rolling her eyes.
"Can you blame her? She's scared of you." Jet snapped, glaring at Yellow Diamond, who's eyes lit up in agitation. "Watch yourself, Onyx. Just because you're a member of Pink's court now does not mean-"
"I'm not a member of Pink's court. I'm not a member of anyone's court. And even if I was," she said, motioning to Steven, "that's not Pink. That's Steven. Either way, she doesn't want either of you near her is because you came to the Zoo and shattered or poofed everyone in some sort of power play when all they wanted was a better life for the humans." she said, turning her back on the gem. "Of course she's scared of you." she said, gently stroking the gem's fur as Steven cleared his throat.
"Look…Jet's right." he said, choosing his words very carefully as he sensed Yellow Diamond's temper flaring. "She's scared of both of you. But," he said, gently placing a hand on Jet's shoulder. "We have to at least try to undo the damage. And for all we know it might work." Jet nodded with a sigh. "I know. It's just…she doesn't know." she said, pulling away as an idea popped into her head.
"Well, how are we going to convince her?" Steven asked, arching an eyebrow.
Jet pursed her lips. "You can't." she said simply, taking a deep breath and motioning for the others to take a step back. "But I can." she said, turning back to the gem and placing her hands in the gem's fur, closing her eyes and feeling a warm feeling coarse through her blood as a bright light filled the air.
"Jet! No-" Jet didn't have time to process Steven's protest as the gem was plunged into a dark room, the only light emitting from the flames that licked the ground that encircled her in a 20 foot radius, the area around them filling with smoke. Turning around, the gem let out a cry of relief and shock when she saw a figure standing in the middle of the circle and hugging themself.
"B9?" Jet asked, jogging up to her former leader. "Are you o-"
"Why." the gem whispered, whipping around with fury in her eyes. "Why did you do that? You fused with a corrupted gem? How stupid are you?!"
Jet flinched, taking a step back. "I…I just wanted to help you." she said. "See…A lot has been going on while you've been away and when I saw you I just…I wanted to help, because they think they might be able to he-"
"Did you ever think maybe I don't want your help?" B9 said coldly. "I came back because I got hit with one of Blue Diamond's sadness waves, so I tracked the ship to find you guys. I came to help you out. If I would have known you were playing buddy buddy with the Diamonds I wouldn't have shown up." she muttered, crossing her arms and looking off into the flames tht encircled them.
Jet's eyes lit up, but the gem did her best to keep her composure. "I'm not buddy buddy with the Diamonds. I will never be buddy buddy with the Diamonds. Not after what they did to Buckstar, not after what they did to our crew, and certainly not after them trying to kill off everyone at the Ball."
B9's eyes widened. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Jet bit her lower lip. "Oh yeah…you didn't know about that…look, basically you remember Uni? Well, the Diamonds were so intent on getting a Perfect Pearl because they want to start Era 3. An era where everyone would be shattered and replaced with perfect gems. Unfortunately, they've got one perfect gem, and they want to make more. So, they invited everyone to a ball and tried to kill everyone off. I don't know how successful that was because…well something huge came out that has kinda taken priority for the moment because it could change everything."
B9 shook her head. "Like…bigger than the Diamonds we pledged loyalty wanting to wipe us all out?"
Jet nodded. "See…Rose was Pink Diamo-" the gem yelped when the fire in the room intensified, filling the room in a brilliant fiery orange light.
"What?!" B9 yelled, her jaw dropping.
Jet nodded, rubbing her arm. "Yeah…apparently Rose fell in love with Earth and the humans there, so she wanted to protect them. She tried to convince the Diamonds, but when that didn't work…she faked her shattering, then took the form of Rose." she explained.
For a moment, the gems sat in tense silence, the fire roaring in their room as B9 started to pace back and forth, tugging at her hair and murmuring to herself until she came to a stop in front of Jet.
"Guess that explains why Pink Diamond wanted the Zoo huh. And why she wanted it to have better conditions after the…Jonathon incident." she muttered bitterly, tugging at her hair as the fire finally died down.
Jet nodded. "Yeah. She cares about the humans and the Earth greatly."
B9 sighed. "Just like you and Buck." she murmured, looking away.
Jet nodded again, the room lapsing into silence. "Why…why do you hate humans? It's not their fault Rose liked them so much. Many of them were even taken from their family and thrown into the Zoo."
B9 bit her lower lip and looked away. "Because Buck died trying to protect them. I just…she shouldn't have had to die trying to protect such weak creatures who can't even defend themselves."
Jet bit her lower lip but brushed off the hostile comment. "Humans aren't weak, B9." the gem said calmly, shaking her head when the gem snorted. "No, I'm serious. Even though humans don't have the powers we have, they are incredibly resilient in both physical and mental strength. For example, Jonathon? That kid has endured dying, being abandoned by you, losing the Famethyst, hiding in the Zoo in case Holly Blue tried to straight up murder a child, escaping from Homeworld before he was sent back to the Zoo where Holly Blue was, and is now the captain of a ship that is currently on its way to Earth as we speak - and he's not the only human who's been through a lot. That boy may be a few hundred years old in terms of physical age, but in terms of human age, you and I both know he is but a human child. While I loved humans and humanity, I used to think they were weak, but Jonathon had to call me out on that. Homeworld has hurt so many people, including humans. And humans don't take that crap lying down - and neither should you or I." she said, shoving her hands in her pockets.
"Look…I know you want to just be left alone and let your mind be consumed by corruption. I don't know why specifically, but I can tell you that just rolling over and accepting your fate should not be an option. Uni tried that, and she's made it abundantly clear she is going to regret that for the rest of her life, because if she hadn't done that, then she wouldn't have gotten engaged to Pearl." she explained. "Basically what I'm saying is…don't give up. None of this is easy - for anyone. But rolling over and dying isn't an option. I know our relationship is rocky at best, but at the end of the day…I think everyone deserves a chance to change and a chance to get help." she said, her eyes welling with tears as she met her previous mentor's gaze.
"So please. Let me help you."
….
"Tourmaline? Tourmaline are you okay?" Steven asked, gently shaking the fusion awake as the gems watched from a distance, weapons at the ready in case the fusion jumped up and went into a rage, all in shock at the fact that the fusion now had a corrupted form of a fusion with charcoal black skin, four arms, and razor sharp teeth, the only sign of corruption being two sets of bright yellow eyes, splotches of purple skin, and a full mane of luscious purple hair.
"I…I'm fine. Or rather 'm as fine as I can be." the fusion said, B9's voice prevailing more over Jet's as the fusion rubbed their temples. "I can still feel the corruption trying to take over…but it feels like it's a little less intense having someone with me."
"So…do you feel comfortable with letting the Diamonds try to heal you?" Steven asked hopefully as the fusion stood. Shifting their gaze from Blue Diamond, to Gold Pearl, to Yellow, the gem felt a shudder run down their spine as the hugged themselves but nodded. "Yeah. Yeah you can try." she said, stepping forward and closing their eyes, fighting the urge to pull away when Yellow Diamond reached a hand out and put it against her head, the fusion's body becoming a little more lax as the purple splotches on their body slowly faded and the luscious purple mane of hair reverted to a head of frizzy black hair that came down to their shoulders.
"See? Good as new." Yellow Diamond offered with a smug smile, looking down at the fusion.
"How are you feeling Tourmaline?" Steven asked, placing a hand on the gem's shoulder. "The physical pain is gone. But the mental fog is still…really intense." Tourmaline said, closing her eyes.
"The might be too far gone." Yellow Diamond murmured.
Blue Diamond shook her head, placing a hand on her yellow counterpart's shoulder. "Gently, Yellow." she said, placing her hand on Tourmaline's other side.
Steven nodded. "Okay, let me try something." he said, licking his hand and putting it on B9's back, who immediately collapsed to her knees and let out a sigh of relief as the brain fog finally fully lifted.
"Holy shit…holy shit." the gem murmured, looking around and jumping back when their eyes met Yellow Diamond's, the gem looking from her to Blue Diamond. Feeling a wave of red, hot anger rush down her spine, the gem pulled away, hugging themselves for comfort as they reverted to their previous fog.
Yellow Diamond groaned. "Ugh, Pink. How many perfectly adequate Gems did you have us ruin?"
Blue Diamond shook her head. "Shh, Yellow! Pink's been punished enough. She's been trapped here in this awful planet with these... creatures."
Yellow Diamond sighed. "We can only do so much, if it was the four of us."
Blue Diamond shook her head aggressively. "Oh no! We can't let her see this!"
Steven arched an eyebrow. "Who? Who do we need?"
Yellow Diamond looked agitated. "What do you mean "who"? White!" As soon as Yellow Diamond made the suggestion, everyone's eyes widened, dumbstruck.
Speaking out of line for the first time, Gold Pearl felt her stomach drop. "W-White D-Diamond?"
Finally managing to pick her jaw off the ground, Amethyst looked shocked. "What?!"
Bismuth placed a hand on Steven's shoulder. "Steven. White Diamond isn't like us. She isn't even like them." she said, gesturing to Yellow and Blue Diamond. "You have no idea what she's capable of!"
Steven shook his head. "It's okay! I just…I just want to talk."
Blue Diamond shook her head. "I don't think you'd have much luck with that... White... hasn't left Homeworld in eons."
Steven scowled decisively. "Then we're going to Homeworld!"
"No, you're not." Gold Pearl snapped, finally losing her patience. "My Diamond, with all due respect, please do not tell me you are considering helping these traitors! On abandoning Era 3 and everything it stands for!"
Yellow Diamond looked shocked at her underling's outburst. "That was before we knew about…all of this. Especially since we now know that Pink is still here. If anything, Pink should be directly involved in the building of Era 3. After all, the only reason White even thought about making Era 3 was because Pink wanted perfectio-"
"That is not Pink." Gold Pearl snapped, her voice faltering and distorting aggressively as she continued, growing larger and larger to the point her shadow covered the temple.
"What the hell?" Freshwater murmured, looking outside to see the beach bathed in darkness. Groaning, the gem climbed out of bed and rushed outside, pausing only for a moment to kiss Pearl's gemstone before rushing downstairs in time to join the gems in watching in shocked silence as Gold Pearl disappeared in a flash of smoke in a form that would have towered over even White Diamond.
"It appears to me that this planet corrupts everything and everyone. I was sent here by White to fulfill one mission and one mission only." she snarled as thunder erupted around them and the area was plunged into chaos. "And I'll be damned if I let some single gemed lifeforms stand in my way." she snarled, her voice reigning down lightning strikes with a deadly precision that hit Yellow Diamond first, then Blue Diamond, the Crystal Gems watching in horror as the gemstones fell.
Being the first to recover from the shock, Freshwater drew her weapon and rushed forward in an attempt to grab the Diamond's gemstones, Gold Pearl matching her speed and meeting the gem's eyes with a smirk before her form shifted to that of -
Freshwater tripped over her feet and let out a gasp of shock as a golden agate with a smug grin beat her to the gemstones and scooped them up, grinning at the gems who had recovered from their shock and were rushing forward as well, yelling loudly.
"What's the matter defect? Scared of agates?" she said in a sing-song voice, snickering as Freshwater let out a battle cry and lunged at the gem - only to plunge her dagger into a solid, black ball that enclosed Gold Pearl. "As much as I'd love to wipe the floor with you and your crew," the gem said with a snicker. "I really must ensure that White sees how swiftly Blue and Yellow were ready to abandon her mission. You should join us sometime. Something tells me you'll be pretty at home at Era 3." she said, blowing Freshwater a kiss as the black bubble lifted into the air and shook Freshwater off before shooting into the sky towards Homeworld.